April 12th

“But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.” John 20:24-25

despite all the shares
of the selfie of Mary
and the gardener,
despite the AI generated
meme of what that locked
room must have looked like,
despite the temptation to join
in the doomscrolling about
what really happened
in the tomb during the night,
Thomas simply wanted
the sort of tangible, touchable,
relatable proof that Jesus
was really Jesus.
because if he came back
with no wrinkles, no wounds,
no weariness on his face, but
with perfect hair, skin, teeth—
well, he obviously wasn’t the one
who had told Thomas about
the way, the truth, the life
and then lived it out completely.

© Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

April 11th

“The LORD went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night.” Exodus 13:21

through
the older couple
picking up trash
on their morning walk,
the coach
who sits the stars
so the scrubs can shine,
the custodian
who does the laundry
of the homeless kids
in the school,
you walk with us
each day;

in the mother
gently holding the hand
of her youngest
recovering from surgery,
in the grandparent
jotting down his memories
in his spidery hand,
in the youth group
delivering sandwiches
and blankets to storm
survivors in a shelter,
you light the way
through the nights.

© Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

April 10th

“’Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’" 1 Corinthians 15:55

before
taking your child
by the hand so
you could skip together
into Eden’s new garden,
you turned to that
basilisk curled up
and keeping
is eye on you, and
taking it by
the scruff of the neck,
you drained its venom,
yanked its fangs and
tossed it back into the corner,
where it rests to this day,
toothless
useless
impotent.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

April 9th

“When they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted . . . ‘And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” Mathhew 28:17, 20b

funny?
ironic?
what?
we easily pick and choose
what we agree with—
you castigate the powerful
or call to account the wealthy
and we cheer you on,
but loving our enemies,
that’s where we part ways.
we can scruple with the best,
look at our feet and scuff
the dirt while avoiding your eyes,
find fence-sitting a spiritual gift—
but you,
never waver about us.
and even when we would
drop you in a New York minute,
you stick with us until
the bitter end
and beyond.
funny?
ironic?
what?

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

April 8th

“After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.” Matthew 28:1

on the first day
of the week,
those who weren’t
gobsmacked into silence
scratched their heads and
looked to google for an answer.
on the second day
of the week,
the entrepreneurs tried
to buy the property for
future development.
on the third day
of the week,
the theologians and
biblical scholars were
developing webinars.
on the fourth day
of the week
the women were
once more being ignored
by everyone not a woman,
while you were gobsmacked,
scratching your head
wondering what else
you had to do for us
to believe in grace.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

April 7th

“A mixed crowd also went up with them, and livestock in great numbers, both flocks and herds.” Exodus 12:38

if we look for the definition
of grace in your dictionary, God,
maybe we would find
this picture instead—
a motley crew of folks,
some with no pedigrees,
others with no heirloom histories,
just wanderers woven by hope
into that community called chosen.
you didn’t stop them at freedom’s border
to check their lineage or
whether their documents showed
them coming from the right group—
you simply whispered, ‘come.’
and the no-names, the forgotten,
the hesitant with feet
worn by other journeys and
all longing to learn new songs,
as different from one another
as folks can be, but each daring
to journey into a promise
none of them could make
come true on their own.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman

April 6th

“So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.” Mark 16:8

if we could
we would push you back
into the tomb, repoint the stone
and seal it back into place.
but since
you have already proven
that will not work,
we’ll just put you into
that box marked ‘Easter’
along with the plastic eggs,
cute stuffed bunnies, and
some leftover chocolate
(if the pastor didn’t eat it all)
and store you in the back
of the closet, making a note
on our virtual calendar
to let you out next year,
if you promise to stop
scaring us with this nonsense
that death does not have
the final word.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman